Best Job in the World winner arrives in the Whitsundays

TOURISM BOOST: Tourism Australia’s Best Job in the World park ranger Elisa Detrez (centre) is looking forward to promoting the Whitsunday region over the next month. She was welcomed to the region by Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service acting regional director Damien Head and Racheal Klitscher from Tourism Events Queensland at Abell Point Marina on Tuesday.

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QUEENSLAND'S Best Job in the World park ranger, Elisa Detrez, arrived in the Whitsundays this week to start work in the region.

Tourism Australia re-invented Queensland's Best Job in the World campaign of 2009, which saw Englishman Ben Southall land a $150,000 job as a caretaker on Hamilton Island.

This time around, Ms Detrez is one of six winners of Tourism Australia's Best Job in the World competition, with each job going hand-in-hand with a six month salary package of $100,000 including living costs.

Ms Detrez will be based in the Whitsundays for one month with a French TV news crew documenting her experiences as she works alongside tourism operators and rangers to promote the region's natural attractions and activities.

The 29-year-old was selected from 100,000 expressions of interest and almost 10,000 applications for the position.

Whitsundays director of Tourism and Events Queensland, Racheal Klitscher, believes Ms Detrez will be a great ambassador for the region.

"We believe she has the skills to excel as a park ranger and the social media skills to be able to share her experiences with the world," she said.

"Her partner Max Lonquard is also a professional photographer so it's a huge bonus for us to have his skills showcasing the Whitsundays."

Ms Klitscher said international visitation was up by 12 per cent and identified France as a growing market for the Whitsundays which attracts 10,000 visitors each year staying 100,000 nights.

Ms Detrez is from France and holds degrees in Business Management Tourism and Political Sciences, speaks four languages and prior to winning the competition was an online marketer.

She started the park ranger position on August 5 and will wrap up in Brisbane at the end of January next year.